In a historic turn of events, UAB football players Tell ESPN The Blazers announced that all of their players have agreed to join Athletes.org, a group calling itself the “players association of college athletes,” making the Blazers the first Division I football team to officially join the organization.

The move was announced in a video posted by UAB quarterback Jacob Zeno on multiple social media platforms.

For the first time in history, the college athletes' association has presented the entire solution to teams and their staffs. The University of Alabama at Birmingham football team https://t.co/GyRYIKxTK9After a full presentation by (AO), the entire team decided to become… pic.twitter.com/pMCudEhJ7v

— Athletes Organization (@AthletesOrg) April 29, 2024

“My teammates and I learned about the future of college sports and how the college football business has worked in the past and how it will work in the near future,” Zeno said. “My team and I decided to make history by being the first team to register and become members on Athletes.org.”

“Friends of college football, join us as we prepare for the future of college sports.”

“In a way, we're being scammed out of our money and decisions are being made without our knowledge. It's really not fair because we do so much for our sport, our school and our conference,” Zeno said. He later told ESPN“At the very least, we have a right to know what's going on and what decisions are being made.”

“[The players are] “I'm not going to have a seat at the table,” UAB head coach Trent Dilfer told ESPN. “I wanted to make sure I helped fuel whatever was going to happen, and I think it would be better to use my influence on behalf of the players to make sure it happens sooner.”

According to players, “everyone on the team heard the pitch and applied.” UAB running back Isaiah Jacobs told ESPN that he envisions a future where “a broader range of players can demand more TV revenue and other resources, like more mental health support from their schools.”

RELATED: Nick Saban, U.S. Senator Wants to Regulate NIL Before It's Too Late

The move isn't a formal unionization effort like the one taken by the Dartmouth men's basketball team earlier this year — UAB players have no current plans to begin collective bargaining with the university — and while it's largely symbolic for now, the move marks a milestone for a college sports world that is waking up to an impending revolution in athletes' rights.

Athletes.org founder Jim Cavallé said the company is working to “lay the groundwork” for whatever system the NCAA develops after its current legal situation is resolved.

“We're not here to get them to boycott, but we understand the power they have,” he told ESPN. “When it's time to negotiate, we're prepared to bring UAB into the conversation. We're building a conduit for new contract negotiations for college sports, a conduit for athletes to be included in those conversations.”

As of Monday afternoon, UAB had yet to release a statement on the matter.

Athletes.org, which currently has about 3,000 athletes as members, is one of several groups trying to position itself as the preeminent player bargaining representative. Shortly after the news broke, college sports business analyst Matt Brown said he “deeply” believed the selection of a bargaining representative would be “one of the absolute biggest stories in college sports this summer.”

This is, I believe, by far one of the biggest talking points in college sports this summer. There can be no effective negotiations or revenue sharing without a player representative on the other side of the bargain. Who will that representative be… and who will choose it?https://t.co/tOfGpWsHqR pic.twitter.com/zUnuotXLAk

— Matt Brown (@MattBrownEP) April 29, 2024

Competing bargaining organizations include The Collective Association and SANIL, which manage NIL-based collectives, and the College Football Players Association, which has grown its membership through traditional union organizing methods such as donations and dues.

Athletes.org is currently funded by venture capitalists, but “plans to generate revenue in the future through a share of any group licensing agreements that it hopes to enter into on behalf of its members.” The organization says its members “will have free access to support services, including legal advice, second medical opinions and mental health professionals.”

Cavale said the organization's next goal is to sign at least half of the football, men's and women's basketball players from the top conferences — there are about 10,000 players in those conferences — and he hopes to do that by the end of 2024.

Athletes.org told ESPN that it is in discussions with schools from “several” powerhouse conferences about planning visits in the coming months.

Charles Vaughn is a contributing writer for Yellow Hammer News.